Is the Death Penalty an Effective Crime, and Should it be Upheld?

Is the Death Penalty an Effective Crime, and Should it be Upheld?
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Is the Death Penalty an Effective Crime, and Should it be Upheld?
Most people hold the death penalty as justified, depending on the nature of the crime. A particular view is that whatever you do to another must be done unto you, equating capital punishment to fairness, and believed to be a form of retribution (Ichinose, 2017). This argument states that where a perpetrator has committed heinous crimes against an innocent individual and gets equal consequences; as a result, it brings satisfaction to the families of the victim and consoles them. However, morality is questioned when the behavior sought to be suppressed is legitimized. Significant contentions opposing the death penalty cite its inhumaneness, lack of the desired deterrent effect, and lack of moral order (Shirley & Gelman, 2014). In hindsight, capital punishment varies according to demographics, political ideologies, and the declaration of human rights. Since the death sentence does not serve as an effective deterrence against crime, it should be abolished.
Arguments Supporting the Thesis Statement
Everyone has the fundamental right to life. No one has the right to take the other's life, regardless of whatever crime the individual has committed. According to Steiker (2016), the death penalty abuses the right not to get a judgment, humiliating treatment, or jail sentence. Moreover, capital punishment undermines human decency, which is inborn in every person. The death penalty does not deter crime. Extensive studies find that capital punishment is not better than life in prison. Statistically, regions that have abolished the death penalty have recorded significantly lower murder rates and egregious crimes (Chan et al., 2017). It is essential to realize that the death penalty is an infringement of the Eighth Amendment, which safeguards criminals from the barbaric act of capital punishment. With extensive research, there is no convincing proof that the death penalty is a crime deterrent.
The death penalty risks wrongful execution of the innocent. The death penalty gives the authorities leeway to subject individuals to it even without sufficient proof of wrongdoing. An innocent person subjected to this treatment will be in mental anguish, and once the individual is executed, it is irreversible (Azamjonovich, 2021). The authorities have failed in conducting proper investigations, thus having the innocent suffer for their mistakes. This lack of work ethic is unacceptable.
The death penalty primarily affects people from minority communities, mainly African Americans and Latinos, compared to Caucasians. This discrimination proves that the justice system is racially biased and is constantly profiling people considered minorities (Steiker & Steiker, 2016). This increasing racial bias makes the individuals affected by this situation more daring and bold. These individuals will not hold back in committing capital felonies because they know the kind of treatment that awaits them once in custody. Whether they are dangerous or not. In some nations, a death penalty is a power tool, not fairness. Various gover...